Customer Reviews
Simpy a must have 
2008-09-05
Another O'Reilly masterpiece. A must have for techs moving into the Cisco world. A lot a real world knowledge that will fill in the gaps left my many of the standard training texts. If you want to give a new CCNA something as a gift this is it.
Must have for new CCNAs 2008-08-14
Just as the book claims - the book has on the job information essential for the new network administrator that can pass the CCNA but lacks experience in the field. While the CCNAs main focus is routing and switching on small networks, this book covers the knowledge gaps in supporting the campus network in areas including the firewall, multi layer switching, SVI's, HSRP, QoS/CoS, supporting VOIP and so on. What was immediately beneficial was the anecdotal chapters on GAD's maxims and chapter 38 titled "avoiding frustration" where the very common problems with "IT politics" always mess with the "perfect design" and the engineers ego. This book, will take your knowledge to the next step after the CCNA and get you set on a path towards supporting larger networks in the "real world" and eventually going after the CCNP. This book is on the top shelf in my library.
Best Networking Book Period 2008-08-05
I am a network engineer, pretty new at it though. This book is my constant companion. I have had more questions answered from this book than from any 2 other sources combined. I travel alot for business and at 2am its hard to find someone to answer my questions. This thing hits the spot.
Great Cisco networking book. Every sys admin should have it. 
2008-07-14
This is a great book on Cisco networking, so just buy it now. I've tried reading the CCNA prep books before but never got around to finishing them because they got into too much detail and I wasn't working with Cisco products enough to get hands-on experience.
At my current job I'm more involved in networking, so when I saw this book, I thought I'd give it a shot. So far it's been very helpful. This book is strictly practical in nature, so you won't get a lot of detail on Ethernet framing or the OSI model. (Note to author, it would be helpful in the second edition to include one concise chapter on the OSI model and network protocols as a refresher.)
If you have a certification such as MCSA, MCSE, Network+, or CCNA, you will have all the background info you need before reading this book. If you have no networking knowledge at all, this book is not for you.
I've been skipping around reading different chapters (this is the kind of book where you can do that). This is one of the few IT book that I've read that actually gave me practical info that I could put to use right away. Here are two examples:
1.) From Ch 2 regarding auto-negotiation: In June 2008 we moved to a new office that had all new gigabit Cisco switches that replaced our 10/100 switches. A few weeks after our move we started getting reports of errors when saving files to our EMC Celerra NAS. Users would get errors saving files to the NAS and their computers' system logs would report a "Delayed Write Failed" error.
Source: MRxSmb
EventID:50
{Delayed Write Failed} Windows was unable to save all the data for the file \Device\LanmanRedirector
The data has been lost. This error may be caused by a failure of your computer hardware or network connection. Please try to save this file elsewhere.
This looked to be a network issue so when I was poking around the Celerra Manager I noticed that its NICs were hard coded to 100 full duplex. Since we were on gigabit switches that were set to auto-negotiate, I deduced (from the knowledge gained in this chapter) that the EMC devices should be set to auto-negotiate as well. So after contacting EMC and then changing the EMC NICs to auto-negotiate, we've had no more reports of these errors.
2.) From Ch 9 regarding routing: I ran into an issue with improper configuration of the gateway of last resort during our office move. For whatever reason, the gateway of last resort was not configured on our new VLANs. We noticed the problem because we couldn't get to the Internet, but we could get to our other offices. When our network support vendor walked my manager through running the sho ip route command, I immediately saw "gateway of last resort is not set" at the top and knew that it was the issue. So even though I had only been reading this book for two weeks, it paid off. I'm sure the vendor would have found the issue after a few more minutes, but it was nice to be able to point out the issue to them.
What a great book 2008-06-03
I loved three things about this book:
1- The simple style it conveys from cover to cover. Every subject in network administration is divided into short but detailed chapters in order to keep the reader's attention focused. Anyone can write a book that lists an experienced user's knowledge of the subject, but it takes a real engineer to compile the data in small doses of knowledge.
2- The clarity of the information mentioned. The author uses the same style of defining the problem, suggesting the best solution, and detailing the technical commands to implement the best solution.
Common pitfalls, problem symptoms, and real life examples are provided as well.
3- The deep coverage of the subject at hand. The author goes over almost every subject in network administration, but without the extra fluff. It's really what you need to know.
Definitely a great buy.
Excellent book 2008-05-17
Written by networking veteran with 20 years of experience, Network Warrior provides a thorough and practical introduction to the entire network infrastructure, from cabling to the routers. What you need to learn to pass a Cisco certification exam such as CCNA and what you need to know to survive in the real world are two very different things. The strategies that this book offers weren 't on the exam, but they 're exactly what you need to do your job well. Network Warrior takes you step by step through the world of hubs, switches, firewalls, and more, including ways to troubleshoot a congested network, and when to upgrade and why. Along the way, you 'll gain an historical perspective of various networking features, such as the way Ethernet evolved. Based on the author 's own experience as well as those he worked for and with, Network Warrior is a Cisco-centric book, focused primarily on the TCP/IP protocol and Ethernet networks -- the realm that Cisco Systems now dominates. The book covers: The type of networks now in use, from LANs, WANs and MANs to CANs The OSI Model and the layers involved in sending data Hubs, repeaters, switches, and trunks in practice Auto negotiation and why it 's a common problem in network slowdowns Route maps, routing protocols, and switching algorithms in Cisco routers The resilient Ethernet -- how to make things truly redundant Cisco 6500 multi-layer switches and the Catalyst 3750 switch Telecom nomenclature -- why it 's different from the data world T1 and DS3 Firewall theory, designing access lists, authentication in Cisco devices Server load balancing technology Content switch module in action Designing QOS and what QOS does not do IP design andsubnetting made easy The book also explains how to sell your ideas to management, how networks become a mess as a company grows, and why change control is your friend. Network Warrior will help network administrators and engineers win the complex battles they face every day.
A good effort, needs a little more depth in some places 2008-04-15
Network Warrior is another quite useful O'Reilly effort in the Cisco handbook space. It really is potentially handy for many real-time network operators. One thing I wish the author had spent much more time on is Ethernet switching. He does dig into some of the quirks of configuring VLANs in the Cisco environment but to my way of thinking associated subjects (mirroring, span port config, spanning tree troubleshooting) need a lot more exposure. One area that cannot be talked about enough are the twists involved in setting up spanning tree through a complex VLAN network. Another potentially vital topic involves interoperating with other vendors' equipment in a spanning tree network. I bought this book hoping for more exposure than I got in those areas. This is the only reason I didn't give it five.
Great next read after getting your CCNA! 2008-04-09
One of the best networking books I have read, period. Not just how it works, but why it works and should be configured. After you study and obtain your CCNA, this is the next read that will fill in many information holes.
Highly recommended.
Essential reading for both the exams and everyday networking. 2008-02-24
In preparation for the CCNA exam, I have gone through several networking books, both Cisco-specific and otherwise. I had thought that the official Cisco Press CCNA set was the best resource... until I took a chance on this tome. While I have found the Wendell Odom CCNA set to be the definitive guide to CCNA/CCENT material, I now must admit that this book is nearly - or even exactly - as essential as a CCNA exam prep guide. While the other guides read like textbooks, giving the reader adequate conceptual and theoretical information, this book felt like a nice long chat with a seasoned "network warrior" about real-world, everyday issues faced by network engineers.
What set this book apart from the thousands of pages (hey, I'm dedicated!) of material I'd already covered?
- CatOS commands; the new Cisco Press books barely mention that CatOS exists!
- anecdotes and real-world examples; even if you know how it *should* work, this book reveals how it *does* work
- objective viewpoint on Cisco technology; no "Cisco's way is the best way" dogma here
- meaningful discussion of high-end, core-strength equipment; everything in the Wendell Odom set focused exclusively on Catalyst 2960 switches and one model of router
- frank, direct, humorous, and engaging style; half the material I've covered previously was dreadfully dull
- illustrations for every concept; this makes my life so much easier when trying to explain things to fellow junior technicians
While the book may seem daunting at nearly 600 pages, I'm flying through it at about 80-100 pages per day. The text is very engaging, and the author's way of phrasing things is informative and structured yet very flowing and casual. I feel that every chapter contains some point, if not several points and concepts, that I wouldn't have known from the other books out there. What is possibly the best feature of this book is the real-world, realistic approach to every concept and issue. The Cisco Press books seem to assume that the reader will be using 2960 access layer switches running IOS 12.2 or better. Network Warrior does not make this assumption. The author makes the realistic assumption that the reader's network could have all kinds of gear networked together, and thus includes information about CatOS as well as a wide variety of Cisco hardware. Also included are some quick and dirty tricks to save time, money, and effort. For example, I didn't know that I could abbreviate almost any command in IOS ("sho" instead of "show", etc.) and still get the same result until I read this book. While I feel that the by-the-book approach of the Cisco Press material is necessary for building a clear foundation, I feel that this book's get-the-job-done take on networking is a necessary follow-up.
The book assumes some working knowledge of networking, but not too much. It doesn't explain the bare basics of networking, nor does it give a history lesson about the histories of each and every cabling standard and networking protocol. It's not a total replacement for a book about networking basics, nor a beginner's guide to the CCNA and/or Cisco equipment. What it does instead is reshape one's conception of what a network is and how to manage it. What it does as well, and does excellently, is fill in the gaps that sorely needed filling in the great mass of other Cisco material out there. If you are preparing for the CCNA, or if you have already passed and think you know all you'll need to know about managing Cisco networks, this book was written for you. I guarantee you will learn something new.
Fills a LOT of gaps 2008-02-16
This book won't help you become an OSPF expert, but it will help you become a better network engineer. It's one of the only books I've every seen that embraces the fact that our jobs have a gruesome amount of logistics inherent to them, far more than a programmer or DBA, for example. I'v spent the last 2+ years at MySpace, and Donahue's descriptions of the problems faced by explosive growth brought a tear to my jaded, burnt-out eye. Finally someone understands we're not just idiots! (If you disagree, try scaling from 10Gbps in transit to 80 in one year, then shoot me an email :) ) Even better, since his anecdotes and advice on the practicalities of our niche are often only mildly technical, they're easy to read. I was able to blast through 100 pages at a time, often laughing and nodding, while still learning a new spin on simple things like IP address allocation.
On a more technical level, this book fills a ton of gaps that aren't covered anywhere else, or the documentation is difficult to find or understand. The section on storm-control was excellent in this sense. If you do nothing else, go to Borders and read that section. It's useful information in its own right, but demonstrates Donahue's tendency to spin something simple in a way that shows you something new. I picked up a lot of weird details in this book, even if I skimmed half of it.
I also noticed a lot of his sidenotes pointed out some very common pitfalls, such as appending a space to your password in PPP on one side of a link by using the context help, then not doing so on the other end, and wondering why your stupid link won't come up.
So what are the cons? None really, just a few things I would have liked to see in there (none of which detract from the 5-star rating).
- I would have liked to hear how Donahue approaches the issue of spares and money, specifically convincing management to buy spares, or hiding them in budgets
- The NTP section could have used a blurb on anycast, which works beautifully for NTP
- I would have liked to see him mention the troubleshooting assistance that change management provides, since if something breaks and your engineers issued a change request, you pretty much know where to start
- I'm also a huge fan of peer-review for CM, as having a manager rubber-stamp your ACL update is ... of limited technical value
I'd say that, along with about 5-10 other books that go into hardcore depth on various technologies (Doyle's routing books, Halabi's BGP, QOS Voice exam guide, etc.), this book should be on a shelf near you at work. If you're already pretty advanced it's a really quick read that tosses some golden nuggets at you when you least expect it.
One more thing, since one guy punished the book's rating for being Cisco-centric, I'd like to take a moment to point to the Book Description, specifically the part that says, "Network Warrior is a Cisco-centric book". If you're at a book store (do they still exist?) and thus do not have access to this description, please see the first paragraph on the back of the book, specifically the part that says, "...helps you deal with real Cisco networks..."
